About Denny Hagel

Hello and Welcome!

Thank you for your interest in me and my work. I would first like to share with you in my own words a bit about me, my background and what fuels my passion to help parents help their children gain the skills to create and live their best life.

I was born and raised in New England, the oldest of five children, 3 girls and 2 boys, in that order. Like all children, I spent my childhood believing that everyone lived as we did…believing our “normal” was the way of life for everyone. As I got older and began to socialize outside of my home, going to friend’s houses for play dates and sleepovers etc, I would occasionally notice how certain things were done differently in other families. I don’t recall feeling as though there was a right way or a wrong way, but I do remember feeling uncomfortable with some of the differences. I was, however, always keenly aware that most of our friends, when given a choice, always wanted to play at my house rather than theirs. This made me feel good, although I was never really clear about their reasons.

When I reached my teen years this became even more evident. Like most teens, life was about socializing…period! And through conversations with my friends planning to do whatever was happening next, I was exposed to how other parents communicated with their children.

This was when I first understood how very fortunate I was to have the parents I had been blessed with. I was treated much differently by my parents than most of my friends were by theirs. In fact, more than once during my high school years, friends would ask if they could talk to my parents about a conflict they were having at home. And my parents always agreed and did their best to help. I grew-up being really proud of my parents…especially when my friend’s parents would reach out and thank my parents for helping!

My parents always maintained a mindset that allowed for mistakes, although I hesitate to use that word because our “mistakes” were always seen and treated as opportunities to learn and do better. (And Lord knows I sure created a ton of “opportunities” to learn from!)

My parents raised me to understand the power and responsibility I had in what happened in my life through my thoughts, beliefs and choices. They treated me in a way that gave me a sense of value and importance. I was encouraged to develop my own thoughts, ideas and beliefs. It was clear that they wanted me to understand that it was my life and it would be and could be whatever I chose it to be. They instilled in me that I had that power…no one else. They also provided us with a strong belief in God. And that this higher power was where my first and most important alliance was…that through this power, I gained mine.

The value my parents placed on one’s individuality and power of choice led to my interest in human psychology. I was fascinated as to why people made the choices they did and how they dealt with life situations.

When I got married and became a parent, I instinctively began raising my daughter as I had been raised. Feeling so blessed to have been raised in such a loving and conscious way, I was always depending on my mother for her input and suggestions. I valued her mothering instincts and wisdom.

As life would have it, my dear mother learned shortly before her 50th birthday that she had inoperable brain tumors and was given a year to live. My daughter was in second grade at the time and had been diagnosed with ADD and so my dependence on my mother’s input had increased as I had no knowledge (Neither did the educational community at this time!) of learning disabilities.

I assumed the role of primary care-giver for my mother for the last year of her life. As we lived in the mountains of Vermont and were headed in to the long winter season at the time, it was decided that it was best for her to move in with me…

Between the many doctor visits and attempted treatments, my mother and I shared the most amazing, loving and beautiful experience that I will treasure for eternity. My mother had been trained as a professional seamstress, however her passion and joy was in being a mother and grandmother. I remember asking her one day how she felt about dying so young…She said, “I have been blessed with five amazing children and have lived to see them all grow up and begin wonderful happy lives…if I have one regret, it is that I will not be here to see Cally (my daughter) do the same.”

The impact of my mother’s words sent my thoughts into the future and all of the times that were ahead of me as a mother when I wouldn’t have her to talk to…I wouldn’t have the benefit of her experience, wisdom and instincts. I shared this with my mother and she came up with a plan. She suggested we talk about those things NOW! And so we did. For the next almost year, every chance we got we played the “what if” game.

I would start with, “What if Cally wants/does/chooses/feels/etc…. (Fill in the blank)?” And then my mother would share her insights. Of course this would lead to hours and hours of conversation about my mother’s philosophy on family, parenting, children and childhood. Most of which I took extremely detailed notes on…

A lot of what my mother shared I already knew from being raised by her and my Dad, but she seemed to enjoy these talks so much that I let her share and expand to her heart’s content. After all, it was a much better subject to focus on than the situation at hand.

My mother did pass away not quite at the one year mark. My life changed forever and seemed to stand still for a period of time. Knowing what my mother expected of me after her passing (she was very clear on this as well during our time together) I pulled myself together as they say to move forward. I will never forget the day she told me, “Denny, when the time comes, you need to honor your feelings, not ignore them, do as I have taught you to do, take care of yourself”. She continued, “As my daughter you will need to grieve, but as Cally’s mother you will need to be strong. I have confidence you will find the right balance.”

I raised my daughter using much of what my mother had left me as her legacy, “The parenting notes” as she called them. I fell short sometimes but when I did I would go back to the notes and do as my mother had taught me, look for the opportunity to learn and do better.

In 2006, when the movie The Secret hit the airwaves and received world-wide attention, I was blessed with an “Aha” moment that brought a tremendous amount of clarity to my life, my childhood and my parent’s wisdom. I finally had an understanding of what my parents set out to teach us. It now had a name…it was called “The Universal Law of Attraction”. To my amazement everything I learned as a child was discussed, explained and referred to in this newly released “secret” as a principle of the law of attraction.

I haven’t any idea how or where my parents gained the insight to raise me as they did. My mother was a seamstress by trade and my father a carpenter…but somehow they instinctively believed in the values, power and validity of this concept long before we had a name for it. Somehow it was “in” them and became the basis of what they wanted me to know about life.

And now over 25 years since my mother passed on, my daughter is grown and I am now a grandmother…still referring to “The Parenting Notes”. ..and my passion and my joy is the same as my mother’s, to nurture children. This passion is at the core of everything my company, Awakened Parenting, stands for and teaches.

My deepest desire is to combine what I learned through my formal education, my personal experiences and what my parents passed on to me and share it with all of you. I believe with all of my heart that those natural instincts that my mother and father had are within all of us…we simply need to be “awakened” and pass them on to our children.

Blessings to you and your children,
denny hagel

Awakened Parenting LLC

Awakened Parenting, founded by Denny Hagel, is a company dedicated to helping parents raise their children the way Nature intended it to be…with a positive mindset, confidence, a positive self-image and an understanding of their power and responsibility in lives through their choices.

The mission of Awakened Parenting is to provide parents with easy to understand and easy to use strategies to integrate key information to achieve these goals in the daily raising of their children. Awakened Parenting supports a strong belief that all children deserve everything parents can provide to help them reach adulthood without limiting beliefs that will interfere with them living their "best life."

It is the intention of Awakened Parenting to get this information to as many parents as possible and effectively change the world….one parent…..one child… at a time.

Today, Denny Hagel is first and foremost a mother and grandmother and continues to pass on this knowledge of power of a positive mindset.

Her formal education was in early childhood education, psychology, and substance abuse. She has dedicated most of her adult career to being a child advocate and parenting coach. In addition, while helping run the family business, she worked as a substitute teacher at public elementary schools in Vermont, and continued working at the elementary level when her family moved to Florida.

Denny Hagel has over twenty-five years experience in researching, studying, practicing and teaching children and coaching parents about the importance and value of self-esteem in our lives. It is her passion to assist parents in empowering their children with this knowledge to create a generation that will be immune to the negativity they may encounter in the world.

Denny has a passion and gift for working with children and parents. She has first-hand experience in the field of ADD and ADHD having raised her daughter, Cally, age 34, who was diagnosed ADD when she was in second grade and from raising her grandchildren, Kaitlyn, age 14 and Zachary, age 13, who was diagnosed ADHD in kindergarten. She has provided counseling and support to parents of children diagnosed with ADD and ADHD.

Denny assisted in Powertrac workshops based on the Law of Attraction and helped organize and lead local Law of Attraction support groups. She has established and created "Awakened Parenting Discussion Forum" on Face Book that currently has over 600 members.

She is the published author of over 100 articles on parenting, several of which have attracted international attention.

Denny has a special love for children. In her spare time she has spearheaded volunteer programs to benefit children in each city where she has lived. Among her many volunteer activities, she served as Assistant Youth Group leader at First United Methodist Church, founded and led the PTF organization at Heartland Christian School and established the first Little League baseball league where she lived in Vermont.

Today, her time is devoted to home schooling her grandchildren, offering support and on line coaching to parents and teachers who consult her on a regular basis.

Denny Hagel is the author of the e-Books "The Missing Secret to Parenting", "The C.P.R. Program for Parents & Teens: Conflict Prevention/Resolution Formula", "Mini-Me Syndrome", “Parenting Using the Law of Attraction”, and"Becoming an Awakened Parent".